For my last blog of the year, I thought I would simply share with you some excerpts from the presentation I made at our annual Roll Call Assembly. I am very proud of our graduating class and wish them well in college and in life… 

Wow!! Even though The Webb Schools enjoy excellent college placements each year, not since the Class of 1999 have I seen such a stellar performance in terms of how well the senior class did with their college admissions!

Some notable accomplishments:

-We finally broke the dry spell with the almighty MIT! Thank you, Charles!

-Not one, not two, but three to Harvard – the hardest school in the world to be admitted to this year!

-Multiple admits to the other Ivies, Stanford, and other super-selective schools in a year when admit rates to top tier* colleges were at an all time low!

*Top tier is defined as the top 50 National Universities and top 50 National Liberal Arts Colleges as ranked by U.S. News & World Report for 2010

"It's a miracle!" I heard some lower classmen say one day as they were hearing the news of acceptances coming in for the seniors this past April. Looking at the results this year, and knowing the incredible selectivity this class was faced with, it may have felt that only a miracle could produce so many acceptances to such outstanding colleges. The fact is, however, that the seniors accomplished this the old fashion way, through hard work, dedication, and amazing attention to details! While having luck on your side helps, no one got into college by chance or by mistake. Every admission decision this class received was well thought out, purposeful, and meaningful. In fact, the only miracle that happened this year is that I started going to the gym on a regular basis! Now that's a miracle!

Here are more interesting facts and figures for you to take in:

Webb School of California – 44 boys in the senior class filed 364 applications to 116 colleges and received 204 acceptances (56% admit rate). Each boy applied to an average of 8.3 colleges. 73% applied to the University of California system and 94% of them were admitted. 36% applied to the Ivy League, Stanford, Cal Tech and MIT, and 31% of them were admitted. 93% applied to the top tier colleges/universities (not including U.C. and Ivy League) such as Duke; Georgetown; Johns Hopkins; University of Chicago; Washington Univ. St. Louis; Middlebury; Wesleyan; Brandeis; Colgate; Vassar; Colby; New York University; Davidson; Macalester; Carnegie Mellon; University of Richmond; Colorado College; Occidental; USC and the Claremont Colleges, and 93% of them were admitted. 86% were admitted to at least one of their top choice colleges. 100% of the boys’ class was admitted to a selective four-year college.

Vivian Webb School – 45 girls in the senior class filed 343 applications to 120 colleges and received 219 acceptances (64% admit rate). Each girl applied to an average of 7.6 colleges. 64% applied to the University of California system and all of them were admitted. 31% applied to the Ivy League, Stanford, Cal Tech, and MIT, and 43% of them were admitted. 98% applied to the top tier colleges/universities (not including U.C. or Ivy League) such as U.S. Air Force Academy; Wellesley; Wesleyan; Georgetown; Johns Hopkins; Barnard; Vanderbilt; Northwestern; Boston College; Hamilton; Bryn Mawr; Vassar; New York University; Trinity College; Reed; Kenyon; Colorado College; Occidental; USC and the Claremont Colleges, and 87% of them were admitted.  91% were admitted to at least one of their top choice colleges. 100% of the girls’ class was admitted to a selective four-year college.

It was also another strong year for girls (almost 50% of the class) applying to Women’s Colleges. 86% of these girls were admitted and 15% of the class plans to attend a Women’s College. Vivian Webb School continues to lead the way as one of the top “feeder” schools to America's most prestigious Women’s Colleges with an average matriculation rate of nearly 20% over the past 10 years.

Overall, 83% of the Class of 2010 will be attending a college ranked in the top 10% in the nation (based on data from U.S. News & World Report on 1600 accredited, 4-year colleges and universities in the U.S.). On average, each senior received an acceptance letter from 5 of 8 colleges (over 60% of the schools to which they applied). 42% will be attending college in the West, 3% in the Mid-West, 10% in the South, 44% in the East, 1% in another country.

Congratulations on a job well done, and best wishes as you take your places in the nation’s leading colleges and universities!

Click here for a list of ALL college acceptances for the Class of 2010.

Click here to see a photo gallery from this year's Roll Call Assembly.

CNN, NPR, and numerous other news and media sources just ran stories about the incredible difficulty of getting admitted this year into the top Ivy league colleges and places like Stanford, MIT, Cal Tech, Georgetown, Johns Hopkins, U of Chicago, Northwestern, and junior Ivy schools like Wesleyan, Haverford, Davidson, Wellesley, Barnard, and The Claremont Colleges (see list below). Most of these super selective colleges will be announcing record low admit rates, some of the Ivy schools and Stanford with admit rates at or below 7%. It will be the most selective year in college admissions for the top tier of colleges and universities in the US!

Despite the incredible odds against most students all over the country and the world, we at The Webb Schools can once again enjoy some of the best acceptances offers in history, especially with the top tier schools mentioned. Few high schools in America will be able to claim one or two acceptances to these colleges among their entire graduating class, yet we are very proud of our seniors and happy to announce that the Class of 2010 has earned a record number of admit offers from almost every major Ivy League College and University along with their peer group of other outstanding schools. Over 80% of the senior class has been admitted to a college classified in the top tier of schools (by U.S. News ratings) and 100% of the class has been admitted to a national ranked four-year selective college or university – most have multiple offers and will have a hard time turning down some of these amazing schools in order to just go to one. A sample of these schools includes:

Many of these places have offered admit letters to more than one Webb/Vivian Webb student. I want to congratulate not only the students for these amazing results, but also the outstanding college guidance team, including our Director of College Guidance Hector Martinez, his assistant Sandy Ostrow, and our faculty writers of Anne Graybeal, Donald Ball, Jess Chaintreuil, and David Fitzgerald.

Click here to read the college admission and matriculation reports from previous years.

Webb athletics have had a banner year with graduating athletes moving on to compete at the highest levels of collegiate athletics. Jacob Waas ’10 will be playing football at UC Davis on a full athletic scholarship; Juli Nokleberg ’10 will be fencing at the Air Force Academy after receiving scholarship offers from several top notch programs including Northwestern and Penn State; and Andrew Lantz ’10 will be competing in cross country and track for Davidson, a Division I program.

I think the success of these student athletes shows something I have been saying for years, that if you have the talent and desire to succeed, there is nothing about attending a “small school” that will prevent you from being found. If you have the ability, college coaches will find you; their job depends on it.You will notice that I put the term small school in quotations above. This is because the only way you can define Webb’s athletic program as small is to merely consider us in the narrowest terms of enrollment. There is nothing small about fielding 38 teams in 13 different sports. The Prep League, of which we are a member, could very well be the most competitive sports league in the country for schools with under 500 students. Prep League teams have won multiple CIF championships against schools many times our size. When we enter playoff competitions we are more likely to play large, public school than small, private ones, and that is because we can compete with and beat them. We are able to accomplish this through hiring great coaches and providing great facilities – in this environment we allow our athletes to reach their full potential.

I write all of the above to disabuse anyone of the notion that you are “giving up” anything athletically by choosing to attend a “small” school like Webb. In fact, it is quite the opposite. As our student athletes this year have shown, if you have the ability, you will get your opportunity. But even more important than the successful placement of our best athletes is the fact that many of our athletes go onto play at colleges that fit them both academically and athletically, where they successfully compete on the field and in the classroom.

Graduating with a Webb degree - and all that comes with it - opens doors to wonderful colleges all over the country. Recent Webb graduates are competing at Harvard, Vassar, Cal Tech, Case Western Reserve, Carnegie Mellon, Lake Forest University, Wheaton, Menlo College, Lewis and Clark and The University of Puget Sound among many others. They are playing football, soccer, volleyball, softball, baseball, cross country, track and field, water polo, swimming, and tennis.

While this post has focused on the opportunities available to our most successful student athletes, it is important to note that no matter your skill level or ability, Webb offers an engaging athletic experience consistent with the mission and values of the school. Whether you have never played a sport before or whether you have the talent and ability to play at the next level, there is a place for you in our program to learn, compete, and grow.

GO GAULS!

Decisions, decisions, decisions! These certainly are what so many college-bound students across the country are thinking about this month as colleges are busy deciding the fate of their applications. It’s our very own version of "March Madness!" Even though the majority of the senior class has already been admitted to college from Webb, either through an early admissions program or by hearing of their admit in the past couple of months, the next two to three weeks will bring a tidal wave of selective four-year admission decisions to thousands upon thousands of hopeful candidates from the Class of 2010 all across America.

At Webb, you can almost feel the anxiety level rising with every day that passes. Senior after senior is asking, "Will today be the day I hear?" and "Did anyone check the mail?" Or, what is more common now than ever before, "Did you check your email [every 10 minutes] to see if any news has arrived?" Colleges are now using electronic notification as a way to expedite the admission decision to each applicant. This past Sunday, MIT, for example, sent out their decisions via email on exactly 3/14 at 1:59pm (or the "math" equivalent of π 3.14159); classic MIT style!

I tell seniors, "Be patient, your news will come." "Don't panic, think of something else." Most look at me and think, "Yeah, easy for you to say! You go through this all the time!" For them, the waiting game is pure torture and March becomes the longest month of their lives.

Even after 23 years of watching this "March Madness," it never gets old! So, imagine how nerve-racking it must be for someone going through this for the first time! I sympathize; but I also trust that each senior will find a good college to call home next year, and things will work out for the best. I love the excitement of it all, but have to admit that I wish every senior would know of all of their college decisions so that we could all get some decent sleep (seniors, their parents, and me!).

Every day, seniors come into my office - not to ask me a particular college related question, but to see if they can read my mind. Yes, my mind, because every senior by now knows me really well and has figured out that sometimes the college counselor gets a bit of a "preview" on what is likely to happen to his students in terms of admissions consideration. The conversation goes something like this:

Senior: Hi, Mr. Martinez, how's it going?

Me: Fine, how are you?

Senior: Good.

Me: That's nice, what's up?

Senior: Oh, nothing.

Me: Is everything okay?

Senior: Well, yeah, but I was just wondering if maybe you might know something?

Me: Hmmm… Well I know many things, but if you're looking for a "hint" on what a particular college is likely to do with you, you're not going to get one from me.

Senior: What do you mean? I just came in to say "hi" and wanted to make sure you didn't think I forgot about you now that all my college applications are done.

Me: Really? How nice of you!  Well, I'm good, sounds like you are good, and since we are both good, we can relax.

Senior: Oh, so are you telling me that I got into my college?

Me: No, I didn't say that at all.

Senior: Oh No! So you are telling me that I didn't get in?

Me: No, I didn't say that either.

Senior: Oh, so it sounds like I got wait listed then?

Me: No, what are you talking about? I didn't say anything, so stop being paranoid!

Senior: Well, make up your mind, Mr. M.—did I or didn’t I get into the college?

Me: You will find out in due time!  And even if I knew, the college would swear me to secrecy, so I would never tell you.

Senior: I knew you were going to say that.

Me: Yeah, great. Well, why don't you go try to read someone else's mind? Mine is totally consumed by the junior class now, and I need to get back to work.

Senior: Yeah, I know, but I figured it was worth a try.

Me: Yeah, well nice try, but no such luck. Maybe when you come by again tomorrow, you will have better luck!

Senior: Sure, but I doubt it.

Me: Yeah, me too.

Every senior that is still waiting to hear about his/her admissions to college is sitting on pins and needles right about now. They feel tortured that they have to wait so long to get a decision - even if most of them haven't been waiting for longer than a week or two since they completed their final college applications. The waiting game is long and torturous, and that is understandable. After all, college admission offices have an enormous task at hand, and it will take time to read all those applications.

I feel sorry for some of my seniors around this time of year. They are officially second semester seniors and graduation seems so much more attainable than ever before; however, getting into college still feels like a far away dream. Some of them will hear any day now; but most will have to wait weeks, if not months (most decisions are not handed out until late March or early April). Some will try anything to see if they can get a "heads up" on what is coming their way. It’s not unusual to get a strange stare from a senior once in a while, and when I ask him/her why they are looking at me so funny, he/she will actually say to me, “I’m just trying to see if I can read your eyes to see if I got into college yet!” Others will lose patience and figure out that I either really don't know what a particular college has decided (which is usually the truth), or that I will simply never let them know even if I do know something ahead of time (which is also true).

Good news? Bad news? Neutral news (like getting wait listed)? Which is it going to be? Our seniors will simply have to wait it out like the rest of the college-bound population across America. But rest assured that they will find out sooner or later and most of the time, the news is well worth the wait. Does this mean I know something they don't? No, it simply means they have to be patient. Only the admission officers reading their applications right now know if they are going to get in or not. And they, like me, aren't going to spill the beans until it's official, and the decision is in the mail. Excuse me, there's someone at my door.

Me: Come in.

Senior: How's it going Mr. Martinez?

Me: Good, how are you?

Senior: Good, thanks.

Me: That's nice, what's up?

Senior: Oh, nothing...

The College Board recently reported that there are now 57 different private colleges and universities in the U.S. (up from less than 10 schools last year) with a total price tag greater than $50,000.00 per year (tuition/room/board).  $50,000.00 plus per year times four--- that’s more than $200,000.00 for one undergraduate degree when you consider tuition increases that are almost a given each year.  Even our public university system is no longer the “bargain” that it used to be.  Just recently the University of California announced a 33% increase in total fees, making the UC system now one of the most expensive public university systems in the country.  With fees, room & board, books, and transportation costs, a UC will cost more than $25,000.00 per year.  Add to this the fact that it’s almost impossible to graduate from a UC school without doing at least five, if not six years, and the price tag quickly approaches the cost of some private colleges.  Now consider the fact that the vast majority of Webb graduates attend either one of those 57 private colleges or a UC school, add the cost of attending Webb, and you have a total bill as large as some home mortgages.

So, how does a family pay for college?  Well, if you are among the fortunate few that have the resources to pay full price for your child to go to any college regardless of cost, you don’t have to worry about it.  And, yes, some colleges will be extra nice to “full-pay” families in the admissions process, so count your blessings! If you are among those that earn less than $60,000.00 per year (total family income) you also don’t have to worry too much, because you will likely end up with a very generous need based financial aid package that could make it almost free to attend college.  However, if you are among those of us that make a good living but don’t have almost a quarter of a million dollars for each of our children that plan to go to college stashed away in a high yield savings account (do high yield accounts even exist anymore?), we need to have a different plan.  Knowing what forms to file and when to file them is important.  Researching possible merit scholarships can also make a difference.  Applying to colleges with healthy endowments and generous financial aid policies is also helpful.  Having a really smart kid with top grades, top scores, and an impressive “resume” to college is even better.  Hoping your 99 year old rich uncle kicks the bucket right before the first tuition bill from the college is due – never gonna happen!

“Colleges have millions of dollars to give away…” How many times do we see these headlines in the news, or from the colleges themselves?  Yes, it’s true, but read the fine print first.  Colleges may give away large amounts of money in forms of scholarships and grants, but most of the time that money is being distributed very carefully in form of either merit awards or need based financial aid.  No college just “gives away money” to anyone for no good reason. 

So, let’s say your kid is one of the lucky ones that has an impressive record and will likely be considered for special scholarships.  These merit awards are based mostly on performance or talent (high grades, high scores, top athlete, gifted artist, etc.) and usually come directly from colleges without having to do anything besides apply for admissions (though there are a few schools that require special application filing dates for merit scholarship consideration as in the case with USC, or a special scholarship application or nomination as is the case with Davidson College).  If the college wants your student more than others, they may sweeten the deal by offering merit money along with the admissions letter.  Many Webb students get merit awards, and sometimes they are too good to turn down (our first two seniors to be admitted to college this year both received major scholarships to their top choice school making it absolutely free for them for all four years!).  Sometimes, however, the merit award comes from the student’s “safety school,” and the family must make the choice to take the offer or pay more for a school that is perhaps more prestigious or selective.  What would you do if your son/daughter got admitted to, say, Harvard or Stanford with no financial support of any type from those schools but also got a full four-year merit scholarship from Boston University or George Washington University?  All good colleges, but some might say “go to your dream school even if we have to mortgage our home;” while others might “take the money and run!”

Need based financial aid is given out differently.  This money is distributed by the colleges based on how much (or how little) a family can personally contribute to the cost of attending college based on the family’s personal financial picture.   Family income and assets must be disclosed, many times in great detail.  Tax Returns must be sent in, questionnaires filled out, justification for certain expenses explained, etc.  The FAFSA (Free Application for Federal Student Aid) must be filed for most colleges, and some private colleges also require the College Board CSS Profile as well.  These forms are filed in the senior year by the deadline that each college requests (Profile in December and FAFSA in January usually). These forms ask what feels like an endless stream of questions about the family and student’s assets and income.  When your child is admitted to the college, the Financial Aid Office at that college will issue a “financial aid award” if you qualify for need based aid, and it will tell you how much of the tuition and other costs associated with attending that college (Room & Board, books, transportation costs, etc.) might be discounted from the sticker price.   For some families, need based aid can be a Godsend and make it possible for their student to attend the college regardless of how expensive the school may be.  Many top tier colleges (like the Ivy league & Stanford) only offer need based aid and choose to put all of their scholarship money into that pool instead of awarding merit money.  After all, given the high caliber student that gets admitted to these types of schools, all the students would likely qualify for merit money making it financially impossible for these institutions to meet such demands.

Okay, so the hypothetical family survived the college admissions process.  Your child got into college, and you are neither rich enough nor poor enough to not have to worry about how to pay for it.  You child applies for merit scholarships wherever possible, and you also apply for need based financial aid.  Merit aid doesn’t pan out, and the need based aid award isn’t enough.  What do you do now? Well, you either hope your child was admitted at another college with a better financial aid award that the family would be happy to accept, or you can call the college that is top choice (but with a lower offer) and speak to a financial aid officer in hopes of explaining your situation.  You must show justification as to why you think that college should re-calculate your award and up the offer.  Sometimes they do, and sometimes they don’t.  It all depends on how much money that college has to give out in financial aid and how compelling your situation really is to them.   Word of advice—BE REALLY NICE TO THE FINANCIAL AID OFFICER YOU SPEAK TO NO MATTER WHAT!

Finally, is there any good news when it comes to affording a college education?  YES!  Even today with our economy in distress and families being stretched financially more and more each year, going to college is still very much a possibility.  Most Webb students apply and get admitted to colleges that do have healthy financial pictures (strong endowments, generous financial aid programs, and special financing options to fit most families).  Even students in the bottom third of each graduating class get to go to colleges that are highly regarded and pride themselves on the strength of their program (academically, socially, and financially).  Webb students don’t usually have to go to colleges that “play games” with their financial aid offers like “gapping” students by offering them less money.  Year after year, I am always impressed by how careful and understanding colleges are with Webb families when it comes to financial aid issues.  It is rare when a college refuses to consider special circumstances and it is more often that a financial concern can be addressed in favor of the family if it is justified.  After all, good colleges want to do everything possible to assure that any student they admit does not turn them down because of affordability issues.

Ultimately, going to college is still a very wise investment, even if you end up having to pay more than you had hoped.  Not only is a college degree valuable for future earnings at staggering rates higher than those that choose not to attend college, but I can think of no other investment that will have a return as powerful or as rewarding as a formal education.  My mother said to me when I became a parent for the first time, “You can do two things for your child.  You can love them unconditionally with all your heart, and you can give them the very best education possible.” It’s what she did for me, and it’s what I’m doing for my children in hopes that they will do the same for theirs.

“Your final college list is due today,” I reminded a few seniors this morning as I saw them hanging out in front of the library. “We know,” they answered me with a nervous grin. “What’s the magic number?” I asked them. “Ten!” they replied. I quickly replied with a smile, “Yes, that’s right—so choose wisely.”
 

Yes, it’s that dreaded deadline date! And it’s just one of many that the Class of 2010 will be faced with this year. However, coming up with the final college list takes a heck of a lot longer than almost anything else that relates to applying to college—even longer than writing the college essays for some. At Webb, I begin working with each student at the beginning of the 2^nd semester of junior year in composing the “college list.”  How do we take over 3,000 different colleges and universities in the U.S. and reduce them to a manageable list of ten or fewer appropriate “good fits” for each graduate? For a small number, it takes a couple of meetings with me, and we are pretty much set to go. For most, however, it takes months, if not almost a full year, before they are ready to commit to their final college choices; and that’s only after many visits to my office and numerous revisions to that final list. After all, picking which colleges one applies to is almost as important as deciding which college to attend. If the list is good, the decisions tend to match.

Ten colleges! Doesn’t that sound like a lot of schools and applications? If you would have asked me five years ago, I would have been the first to say “YES!” and I would have likely suggested paring it down to eight or fewer. Ten years ago I would have laughed if I would have been told that now I would be approving college lists of ten different schools. I remember when applying to five was pretty normal. For many of us in the “X Generation” or before, it was perfectly common to apply to only two or three different colleges and not think much about it. I remember in my high school, only a handful of seniors were applying to more than three colleges. I applied to four, and only one boy was rumored to have applied to ten colleges, and we all thought he was crazy from the start. Well, folks, times have indeed changed and applying to as many as ten colleges is actually considered the norm. In fact, some people worry that it’s not enough, and perhaps spreading a wider net will gain a better catch. Given that predicting which colleges will admit a student has become much more difficult to do because of the dramatic rise in selectivity over the past decade at most four-year colleges and universities, I can see why some students would be tempted to apply to more colleges. However, what I have found is that keeping the list to no more than ten actually helps our students get into better colleges. 

Webb is actually very well-respected by so many colleges and universities in part because we are known as a place that limits the number of college applications a senior can file—and for very good reasons. First, colleges know that our students have done their homework well when it comes to researching their college choices. They aren’t just randomly applying to unknown schools or places that are not a “good fit.” Second, the list is manageable and realistic, with places that make sense for the most part and were not just someone else’s idea. Thirdly, colleges know they have at least a 1 in 10 chance of getting the student, not 1 in 20 or even 30 that a few other high schools have been known to allow. Colleges want to know that the student they are considering is serious about them, and isn’t playing any “games.” In the end, colleges appreciate that Webb students have a thoughtful and purposeful list of colleges that means something to each student.

Let me also add that ten is the maximum number of colleges that we like to see on someone’s list, not the minimum. So, it is very common to have eight colleges or fewer on a final list. In fact, on average, a Webb student applies to seven colleges and gets admitted to four. That average is more than enough colleges to apply to and more than enough offers to make a good choice. 

If each student has spent the time and effort in researching his or her college choices and has listened carefully to the advice we offered in College Guidance, there is no reason why any Webb senior should feel pressured to apply to too many colleges because of a fear of being rejected by every school. Ultimately, applying to too many colleges can not only increase a student’s chances of making errors or presenting poorly prepared applications, it may also upset the college admissions officers. Most college applications will ask the student to list the other colleges to which they are applying. If the admissions committee sees too many schools on the list, they assume that the student is not serious – or worse, desperate.  These are two things we don’t want any college admissions officer to think of any applicant from our schools.

A winning college list is one that fits each student like a well-made, custom-tailored suit.  Each student is different and one size does not fit all.  Good thing that Webb has been custom-fitting our graduates with just the right colleges for almost 90 years.  With so many outstanding colleges and universities from which to choose, I know our seniors will choose wisely.